Return to General Absolution

[Phemie]

I remember when our bishop went for his ad limina visit to Rome. Form 3 of the Sacrament was eliminated immediately after his return to the diocese. This would have been 2001, early 2002. I think it was 1999 or 2000 when the children who were receiving the sacrament for the first time did so at a communal service with general absolution.

After he eliminated general absolution, fewer and fewer people came to the Penitential service. Today if 10 show up it’s a good crowd. Personally, I’d like a penitential service every First Friday.

In 2003, when Dad was dying, I was back in my home parish and the priest asked me whether we still had general absolution. I replied that, no, not for at least 18 months. He told me the francophone bishops in Canada had refused to give up the practice. They were petitioning Rome to reconsider and weren’t stopping until they got a response. No idea if they ever got one but it hardly seemed fair to me at the time that if you were unilingual English in that diocese you were forced to go to confession in the traditional way but if you could speak French you could avail of general absolution.

I also have to say that, until about 2 years before general absolution stopped in my parish, I had never been told that we were required to confess mortal sins orally even if we’d received general absolution. And that’s how I’d received the sacrament for at least 15 years.

 

[po18guy]

It has probably always been done, but is an abuse of the Sacrament and risked rendering all such “confessions” null and void. “General” means the ship is sinking or the airplane is crashing - thus no time for individual confession. Confession is for contrite - not prideful - hearts.

It is perhaps worse than allowing one parishioner to receive communion for all, as wacky as that sounds. Still, it’s a lot easier than expounding on confession at the end of each homily.

Or is it?

Last parish we were at, Father Jack hammered on confession constantly, and the Saturday lines were long - a blessing and very edifying to see!

 

[edwest]

Individual confession to a priest.

 

[FrDavid96]

Thus sounds a bit like an abuse to me. I was under the impression that general absolution is intended only for emergencies and that Catholics are still obligated to confess individually any sins that were covered by the general absolution. Some examples would be giving general absolution to soldiers before a big battle or to passengers on a sinking ship who aren’t sure of survival.

Correct.

That form has always been restricted, most specifically, for emergency situations only.

 

[FrDavid96]

I remember the topic came up around 2007ish. I was speaking to her on the phone and told her I had to run as I was off to confession (Limited morning hours while kids were in Catholic school), and she made a comment like, you still do that?. We later discussed it and she believed the general penance at mass (I confess to…) replaced it or covered everything now. And that’s how we got to talking about memories of General Absolution at mass in the 70/80s.

Neither of us had attended mass often after Catholic High School. We’d both returned for a time when our kids were born. A reflection of poor teaching, the 70/80s changes, and assuming nothing has changed back. It makes me realize that we are most likely not alone on mixed messages and confusion.

Yes, it was done. But not legitimately. It was an abuse.

 

[FrDavid96]

I found this in another article on the history of confession. Apparently it was valid and ended by Pope John Paul the second.

No. That’s absolutely UN-true.

St John Paul II made no changes. That form of General Absolution was never allowed in the first place (except for genuine emergencies).

What actually happened was that, in response to the abuses, John Paul II re-affirmed what Paul VI had earlier decreed.

 

[mVitus]

Interestingly, I think the Bishop of Honolulu did it for a bunch of people at the cathedral during that false alarm when people thought a North Korean missile had been fired at Hawaii.

I believe if any of them were in mortal sin, they would have to seek a reconfession ASAP.

If there was a realistic reason to suspect danger of death, even if it later turned out to be a false alarm, I would think it would still meet the criteria as it was given in good faith, no?

 

[Vico]

…

It was always required, in the 1973 penitential rite, unless physically or morally impossible, to confess individually, even though there was general absolution given, due to circumstances. You can read the current 1983 Latin canon law about it for details. In 1973 the 1917 canon law was used.

CIC (1983)

Can. 962 §1. For a member of the Christian faithful validly to receive sacramental absolution given to many at one time, it is required not only that the person is properly disposed but also at the same time intends to confess within a suitable period of time each grave sin which at the present time cannot be so confessed.

Can. 963 Without prejudice to the obligation mentioned in can. 989, a person whose grave sins are remitted by general absolution is to approach individual confession as soon as possible, given the opportunity, before receiving another general absolution, unless a just cause intervenes.

 

[FrDavid96]

It was always required, in the 1973 penitential rite, unless virtually impossible, to confess individually, even though there was general absolution given, due to circumstances. You can read the current 1983 Latin canon law about it for details. In 1973 the 1917 canon law was used.

CIC (1983)

Can. 962 §1. For a member of the Christian faithful validly to receive sacramental absolution given to many at one time, it is required not only that the person is properly disposed but also at the same time intends to confess within a suitable period of time each grave sin which at the present time cannot be so confessed.

Thanks.

Do you have a translation of the 1917 Code for the corresponding canons?

I used to have a link to an online text of it, but can’t find it.

(One of these days, I’ll buy a hardcopy. Someday.)

It is worth mentioning that the 1973 Rite of Penance (Bl Paul VI) remains unchanged. St John Paul II made no changes (despite claims in the media). What is, in the present-day, reserved for emergencies, has been that way from the beginning.

 

[phil19034]

semper_catholicus:

Yes. Unfortunately, it was being practiced a lot in many dioceses across the US and Canada. I say unfortunately, becuase all the times it happened it was invalid.

Certainly illicit but I would not think invalid.

I think it may be a potential way to get around pressure to break the seal like is happening in Australia.

No, that is NOT what it’s for. It could not be used in that kind of situation

 

[Ardent_Fire]

I vaguely recall something like a general absolution mass when I was a kid in the 80s.

We also had a priest that actually hated confession so much, he often would tell people what they were confessing weren’t sins, I guess he felt people were fretting over things that were a waste of time. Imagine my reaction when I had a friend come up to me in school and tell me she had no sins, because Father said so…

This priest was just so annoyed with hearing them that he had us get into a line at one of those “general absolution” style masses during Lent while he sat in a chair on the altar. People would whisper something into his ear and he would give a blessing with his hand. Over and over again, people would walk by him, whisper in his ear, and walk off the altar. He barely even listened to what people were saying. I asked my dad what I was supposed to say and he told me to just say “Father I have sinned please ask forgiveness” or something strange like that.

Did ANYBODY ever experience that? I did that one year. Never before, and never since.

 

[thistle]

I lived in Hong Kong during the SARS crisis. Because SARS was so contagious with a very high mortality rate Masses and Confessions were suspended until the crisis was over. A General Absolution was given but this was conditional upon penitents whose mortal sins were covered going to individual Confession as soon as the crisis was over and individual Confession was available again.

 

[babochka]

I vaguely recall something like a general absolution mass when I was a kid in the 80s.

We also had a priest that actually hated confession so much, he often would tell people what they were confessing weren’t sins, I guess he felt people were fretting over things that were a waste of time. Imagine my reaction when I had a friend come up to me in school and tell me she had no sins, because Father said so…

This priest was just so annoyed with hearing them that he had us get into a line at one of those “general absolution” style masses during Lent while he sat in a chair on the altar. People would whisper something into his ear and he would give a blessing with his hand. Over and over again, people would walk by him, whisper in his ear, and walk off the altar. He barely even listened to what people were saying. I asked my dad what I was supposed to say and he told me to just say “Father I have sinned please ask forgiveness” or something strange like that.

Did ANYBODY ever experience that? I did that one year. Never before, and never since.

Not that, exactly. But I experienced a very strange Penance service in which we were told to write once again, the one we most struggled with, on a piece of paper. Then we walked up to the priest and handed him our of paper. He read the paper, gave absolution, then we walked over to a nearby fire pit and burn the piece of paper with our one sin. This was in the late 90s, I believe. It was the only communal Penance service I have ever attended.

 

[Ardent_Fire]

That is very strange. Our priest didn’t even bother with that, now I remember it was just a sin we were supposed to whisper in the priest’s ear and he gave the blessing.

Though I did write the sins on a piece of paper and throw it in the fire on a retreat. It’s just not a proper “Spirit of Vatican II” upbringing without doing that at least once.

 

[chessnerd321]

Apparently it was valid

I don’t know if I believe that. To my knowledge it’s only valid, even in emergency situations in current times, if the parties resolve to privately confess at the next availability.

I also don’t think most people would want the ancient practice to actually be renewed. The ancient practice was to actually confess publically not just get absolved.

 

[thistle]

To my knowledge it’s only valid, even in emergency situations in current times, if the parties resolve to privately confess at the next availability.

You are correct.

 

[0Scarlett_nidiyilii]

Never were they told that they had to go to individual confession if they had mortal sin.

This was the problem—poorly catechized people thought this was a get-out-of-confession free card.

 

[0Scarlett_nidiyilii]

The seventies were such a mess.

People meant well.

But…

 

[BoomBoomMancini]

The absolution given in general confession is still good, (FrDavid, correct me if I’m wrong here) it just requires you go to individual confession assuming you survive whatever the impending disaster is. If a nuclear missile had actually hit Honolulu and killed the people in the cathedral, they would’ve been covered by the general confession.

 

[Blessedwithfive]

In the early 80’s my church held these services. All gathered in the gym, said some prayers, quietly told our sins to God in our hearts and all received absolution at one time from the priest. The service was huge. I remember it because we could hardly fill the Church on Easter, much less the gym on a Friday night.

We were told it was the “new way”. And it was pretty painless. When I mentioned it to our priest out here his head about exploded. And he looked at me like I was the anti-Christ.

I know Dynamic Catholic has advocated for this to bring people back. And personally, I am not sure how I feel about it.

Confession times (45min on Saturday afternoon) are empty. Like nobody. And that goes for my church and the other church in the town. I have been to both and once I even “startled” Father as he was not used to people coming in.